The present invention relates generally to an improved deaerator system for removing air from water which is to be used in carbonated beverages, and more particularly to a positive pressure indicating means for use in such a deaerator system.
Modern beverage processing systems prepare or formulate large amounts of soft drink beverages or the like and place the beverages in containers such as cans or bottles at high rates of speed. These containerized beverages are then shipped through distribution channels to retail stores and the like where they are purchased for consumption.
In the preparation of soft drinks, the dissolved air must be removed from the beverage if the beverage end product is to be of uniformly high quality and have long shelf life. Deaeration improves beverage stability in the filling process, minimizing foaming action in and out of the container during the period after the container has been filled and before the container closure is applied. If the beverage is contained within a can, inclusion of air can permit deterioration of the plastic can lining thereby damaging the can and spoiling the flavor of the beverage. Such occurrences are, of course, deleterious to the reputation and the subsequent sales efforts to the beverage maker.
In modern beverage processing systems, a deaerator vessel is included. The deaerator vessel includes a plurality of cooling plates which contact the water as the water moves through the vessel to cool the water and to force air from the water. The air escapes from its dissolved state within the water, and is drawn from the vessel through an appropriate pumping system.
To assure that external air does not enter the vessel during the deaeration process, a positive pressure is formed within the vessel. This positive pressure may be formed, for example, by introducing a gas, preferably carbon dioxide, into the vessel until a positive pressure within the vessel is obtained.
The carbon dioxide gas is normally introduced into the deaerator vessel through a valve which must be set to an appropriate opening which assures that a positive pressuure is maintained within the vessel. Because only a slight positive pressure within the vessel is necessary, the valve should be set so that only a minimum positive pressure is maintained within the vessel to avoid wasting the carbon dioxide gas. Unfortunately, prior deaerator systems have not provided a convenient means by which a positive pressure within the vessel may be indicated.
It is therefore a general object of the present invention to provide a new and improved deaerator system for use in purging air from water during the processing of carbonated beverages.
It is a more particular object of the present invention to provide a positive pressure indicating means for use in such a deaerator system which provides a readily discernible indication when positive pressure within the deaerator vessel is reached.
It is a further object to provide such a positive pressure indicating means which allows the existence of positive pressure within the deaerator vessel to be readily and visually detected by an operator.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide a deaerator system including such a positive pressure indicating means which further includes a check valve means for protecting the positive pressure indicating means from excessive back pressure caused by beverage processing system components downstream from the positive pressure indicating means.